


Escape From the City

by Ocrilio



Series: The Radiance Chronicles: Luminescent Harmony [2]
Category: K-On!
Genre: A magical city adventure, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-16
Updated: 2015-10-02
Packaged: 2018-04-09 16:03:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4355384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ocrilio/pseuds/Ocrilio
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With a familiar face safe and sound, the three set off into the city, do battle with mysterious foes, and meet more friends, old and new.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Big City, Bigger Troubles

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, the title is a Sonic Adventure 2 reference. Sue me.
> 
> Also, things of a magic nature actually happen in this part of the series.

** The Radiance Chronicles: Luminescent Harmony **

_Act II: Escape from the City_

* * *

**_ Chapter 1 _ **

_Big City, Bigger Troubles_

* * *

There was something about the city locale that Juddy liked.

It was either the nostalgia of being raised in a busy area, or just the general ambience of life moving on.

This is why when he, Ritsu and Mio finally set foot into the city centre, the sight and sound of traffic obstructions did not surprise him in the least.

Though, something was amiss to the three of them.

The traffic didn't seem to be progressing at all.

For the time of day it was, that alone was enough for the trio to be drawn to the vehicle-filled streets, if only just to see what in this weird world was happening down there.

"As much as I like the city," he finally said, breaking the silence, "this is just strange."

"No kidding," replied Ritsu. "Noisy, too."

"And it's not just this road," Mio added. "It looks like all the roads are like this."

Juddy pulled out his phone and opened the map.   
"According to this, you're right. It stretches all around the city."

"Wow, that thing's convenient, isn't it?" Ritsu asked, pointing at the map.   
He opted to say nothing in reply, closing the map.

Then, he spoke once more.  
"I think this calls for a little investigation."

Mio raised an eyebrow. "Investigation?"

Juddy nodded. "Exactly. We'll find out what's going on, and determine an appropriate course of action."

Ritsu grinned at the declaration. "More excitement. I like it."

Mio, however, had some objections. "Hold on. What happens if one of us gets into trouble?"

The veteran Radiant thought for a moment. "Good point. I'd suggest telepathy, but the problem with that is we could drift out of range..."

The girls looked at Juddy, confused.  
"Out of range?"  
"Telepathy?"

"You guys wouldn't happen to have phones then, would you?" he asked them both.

Reaching into their pockets, Ritsu and Mio pulled their own phones out.

"Huh. Somehow, I forgot about this," Ritsu mused. "Didn't think it'd work."

"I have mine as well," Mio confirmed.

"Awesome. We'll use these to keep in touch."

Just as Juddy ended the sentence, their phones sprung to life, immediately synchronizing with each other.

 _I'll have to thank Milton for that one later,_  he thought to himself.

"What... just happened?" the two girls asked in unison.

Juddy explained. "Mobile auto-synchronization. It's more convenient this way."

"Yeah, but what does this 'sync-whatever' actually  _do?_ " Ritsu piped up.

"Unlimited call time, basically. Oh, and a few other things, too. Check out your maps apps."

They did so, and sure enough, the map matched up with Juddy's own.

"Oooh, now  _that's_ crazy," Ritsu remarked.

“I have to admit, that puts me a little more at ease.” Mio relaxed a little, one of her worries relieved.

“Well then,” Juddy spoke up, “if there aren’t any more worries or questions, let’s set this investigation into motion.”

Ritsu had made it halfway down the path before Juddy finished. “Way ahead of ya!”

As she disappeared from sight, the other two sighed.

“She’s always like this, isn’t she?”

“I’m afraid so.”

With that, they separated; Mio taking the other side of the street, and Juddy waiting until she was out of sight before using his fire magic to boost onto the rooftops.

* * *

 As they ran, a large group of warehouses came into view. Several black cars of different types were stationed all around.

The three drew ever closer to their destination, but just as they were near, their phones began to rumble.

Two cries were heard amongst the sea of horns.  
“What?!”  
“No  _way!!”_

Juddy, however, was more composed as he peered at his own phone curiously.

“A jamming signal? Why would there be a jamming--”

Though, after reaching the buildings’ end, he received his answer.

* * *

 Ritsu rushed into the first warehouse she saw and immediately took cover behind a few errant boxes.

From her hiding place, she poked her head out to get a good look at what she was dealing with.  
What she saw didn’t really put her at ease, though.

Several men in suits, loading different bags and boxes onto several large trucks.

The girl raised an eyebrow. “I wonder what they’re for...”

She scanned the area for a few minutes in silence, still processing the situation.

And then, as if fate was working against her...

...her phone began to ring. Rather loudly.

The suited men froze and looked in her direction.

She leapt up, panicked.

* * *

 Outside the warehouse, Juddy swiftly made short work of the suited man guarding the signal jammer, and fried its circuits, disabling it.

Just then, he heard a rather loud ringtone, voices of realization, and a panicked yelp.

Rolling his eyes, he ran into the warehouse.

As the suited goons surrounded her, Ritsu took a deep breath and concentrated, causing her magic to flare up.

She then answered the call.

* * *

 “Ritsu, where are you?”

Outside the complex, Mio’s worries had gotten the better of her, and figuring her phone was out of commission for the time being, she opted to try the payphone instead.

After a few tries, she finally got through.

“Mi-? –‘m a li---- ti-d u- --ght now!”

The lingering effects of the signal jammer were causing some heavy interference.

* * *

 “Mio?” Ritsu asked, bewildered. “I’m a little tied up right now!”

As she concentrated on her flame spell, the men surrounding her looked on, an amusing mix of confusion, bewilderment and shock on their faces.

However, the emergence of another voice surprised her.

“Ritsu, what the  _hell?!”_

She yelped and spun around in a hurry.

“Juddy?!”

The shock caused her to miss her mark entirely; the fireball flew past all of the strange men and engulfed a few waiting cars.

Juddy and Ritsu looked on in horror.

“Uh-oh.”

* * *

 Mio stood at the payphone, confused. “What? I can’t hear--”

Just then, a huge explosion erupted from the warehouse complex, shaking the ground.

Or, at least, that’s what she assumed had happened.

Turning around, her fears had been confirmed.

There was a large smoke cloud billowing from the warehouse complex.

The girl just stood there, staring, as throngs of people ran from the scene.

_“I know I shouldn’t... but I can’t just leave them alone...”_

Closing her eyes, sighing, and steeling herself, Mio began to run towards the now-destroyed warehouse complex.


	2. Enter, the Rogue of Wind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeremy makes his long-awaited(?) first appearance!

** Chapter 2  
** _Enter, the Rogue of Wind: Jeremy_

“What is going _on_ here?” Ritsu asked, knocking out one of the suited goons.

“Well, there’s a bunch of suspicious guys packing things onto trucks. Take a guess,” Juddy replied, kicking one goon into another.

As the duo fended off more of the suited goons, a very familiar form made its way into the destroyed interior.

“H-hello? Are you two alive in here?” Mio asked, walking through the doorway.

Juddy and Ritsu turned their heads in response. “Mio!”

“Hold it!”

Two more of the suited me emerged from their safe zones, grabbing Mio’s arms in short measure.  
She let out a yelp of surprise.

Unfortunately, no matter how much she struggled, the two men held her firmly in place.

Her brief struggle managed to kick up some dust from the rubble, which tickled her nose.

And then...

She sneezed.

The force of said sneeze propelled her –and the two apprehending her – through the air at an alarming speed, slamming into the last two suits with the force of a runaway freight train.

The impact knocked out the two holding onto Mio, and she stood, dazed, but none worse for wear.

Ritsu was the first to speak. “Nice job.”

“That was pretty good,” Juddy agreed.

A sudden movement caught his eye immediately after speaking. “But it looks like we aren’t out of the woods yet.”

The two girls looked in the direction he was staring in.

What seemed to be an army of more of the strange men were headed in their direction.

Ritsu’s eyes darted around frantically, searching desperately for something, _anything_ to get them out of this predicament.

Her line of sight finally settled on a car parked conspicuously some distance away.

“Guys, I’ve found our ticket out of here! C’mon!” she shouted, dragging Mio along into the distance.

Shrugging, Juddy followed them along.

Once Juddy caught up to them, Ritsu had already parked herself into the front seat of the vehicle.

“...What do you think you’re doing, Ritsu?” Juddy asked, eyebrow raised.

“What does it look like? I’m getting us outta here,” she replied.

“By hijacking a four-wheel drive?”

“I prefer the term ‘borrowing’.”

Juddy rolled his eyes. “I’ve heard _that_ one before.”

Inspecting the vehicle while Mio tried unsuccessfully to talk Ritsu out of it (“This is crazy, and definitely illegal!”), he decided to hazard a peek into the back.

“...Oh, I get it,” he mumbled in realization.

Sleeping soundly in the back of the large vehicle was none other than fellow Radiant and Juddy’s partner-in-crime, Jeremy.

The sudden sounds of people arguing brought Jeremy out of his state of rest.   
“...What’s going on out there...?”

He sat up slowly, so as not to become disoriented.

“I am _so_ sorry about this...”

The car door opening, and an unfamiliar voice.

“Yeah, we’re borrowing the car.”

And a familiar one.

“ _Oh, hey, Juddy’s here,_ ” he thought idly, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Finally alert, Jeremy looked around.

Placed in the driver’s seat was a brown-haired girl sporting a yellow headband shooting a grin at Juddy, who currently occupied the passenger’s seat.

And in the seat next to him was a taller girl sporting the same uniform as the other girl, with long, somewhat-dishevelled black hair.

Jeremy shot Juddy a confused look. “So, Juddy, what’s with the schoolgirls?”

Juddy grinned back. “Funny story, that one. For starters,” he began, gesturing toward the black-haired girl, “the one next to you is Mio. We rescued her not too long ago.”

Mio gave Jeremy a rather sheepish wave.

He nodded in acknowledgement, then asked “And the girl in the driver’s seat? What’s her deal?”

Juddy glanced at the headband girl, and then turned back to him, a cocky grin on his face.

“That’s Ritsu. She snuck up on me in a forest, and the rest is history.”

“ _Hey!_ ” Ritsu snapped.

Juddy’s only response was a shrug, grinning all the while.

“So, Ritsu, was it?” Jeremy began, changing the subject. “Judging by the fact that you’re the one in the driver’s seat, that must mean you have your license, right? I'm impressed.”

The car fell silent as the girl's eyes darted around nervously.

"Yeeeeaaaah, about that..."

Jeremy stared at her, expression blank.

Then, he proceeded to climb over to the driver's side. "Give me the wheel."

"Wait, wha--?!"

"Give me the _wheel!_ "

He and Ritsu became locked in a brief struggle for control of the car as Mio looked on in mild surprise.  
Juddy rubbed both his temples.

Something moving towards them in the side-view mirror caught his eye, though.

"Oh, crap."

Curious, Mio peeked out the back window, and saw more suited men - as well as several cars -  heading their way.   
"Um, you two, we need to get out of here..."

Jeremy and Ritsu paused their impromptu wrestling match. "Huh?"

Juddy's voice immediately filled the car. _"No time! Punch it!!"_

Taking his word as a 'let's get the hell out of here', Ritsu started the ignition and slammed down on the gas pedal.

The sudden acceleration sent Jeremy right into the back seat once more as Mio held on for dear life.

The black four-wheel drive they commandeered left the warehouses behind and rocketed out onto the city's main road, with a fleet of other cars hot on their tail.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd accidentally posted the third chapter before this one because I thought I'd uploaded this one already.
> 
> Sorry 'bout that.


	3. Burning Through the Streets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The newly-formed quartet speed through the city and try to give their chasers the slip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd recommend listening to the instrumental version of "Drumming Shining My Life" for the majority of this chapter. It's the song I had in mind when I wrote it.

** Chapter 3 _  
_ ** _Burning Through the Streets_

"Turn right here!"

The four-wheel-drive sped through the streets of the city, drifting around a right turn. The black cars tailing them followed suit.

Juddy hissed. "Damn, they know these roads better than we do..."

"Well, _duh._ They've probably lived around here all their lives," Ritsu replied.

"Just concentrate on the road, Ritsu..."

"Fiiiine... Direction?"

A quick look at the phone's map and Juddy had his answer. "Fake 'em out, then turn left."

Ritsu grinned. "You got it, captain!"

She pulled to the right, then spun the wheel as hard as she could in the opposite direction.

The action actually managed to throw off quite a few of the pursuers, some of them spinning out in the process.

 _"Yes!"_ Ritsu cried. "Later, losers!"

"Concentrate," Juddy stated calmly, eyes still locked on his phone. "There're still more of them on our asses."

In the back of the car, Mio was not coping well with all of the excitement.  
"This is crazy... This is all so crazy..."

"Believe me, it's not the worst situation we've been in," Jeremy mused.

Mio, who previously had her eyes shut tight in attempt to block out what was happening, finally looked up at him.  
"What do you mean?"

Jeremy sighed. Comforting was not his strong suit, but damn it all, he'll try anyway.  
"What I mean is everything will be fine. I'm not going to tell you not to panic, but it's going to be okay."

At that moment, as if to balance out the universe, there was a sudden crunch that sounded like wood breaking.  
Mio yelped, and hastily gripped onto Jeremy's arm.

Jeremy took back that earlier thought in his mind. "...Maybe."

Juddy rubbed his head with two fingers. "Ritsu, I told you to watch the road!"

"You told me to turn again!" she yelled back.

"But into a _collection of market stalls?!_ You're lucky everyone in the city was distracted by our little commotion earlier!"

Ritsu's eyes darted back and forth. "That... was... all part of the plan!"

Juddy turned his attention back to the map. "The hell it was. Just get us back onto the road."

With a huff, Ritsu made a sharp right turn, leading them all onto a freeway.

After a few seconds of inactivity, the cars began to make their next more as the four looked on.

"What are they...?" Jeremy began.

Ritsu finished the thought in a panic. "They're boxing us in!"

And then a tremor rocked their vehicle, causing Mio to yelp again.

Juddy was understandably annoyed by this. "What good is _running us off the road_ gonna do?! Jeremy, is there anything we can use in the back of this thing?"

Jeremy used one arm to shrug. "Not sure; never bothered to check. Hold on."

Prying himself from Mio's surprisingly strong grip for a second, he rummaged through the contents of the back.  
"Hmm."

"Did you find anything?" asked Juddy.

"Sorry, but there ain't much here... other than various wheels of cheese?" Jeremy replied, a confused look on his face.

Hitting a switch on the dashboard, Juddy opened the sunroof.  
"Perfect. Hand me one."

The other three present had the same thought. At the same time.

_"Are you crazy?!"_

The car shook again, but they were too bewildered to notice.

"Well, it's this, or our usual shtick, and I'd rather not cause any more trouble than I need to," stated Juddy, climbing over the front seat.

Jeremy blinked, then gave a defeated sigh, handing a cheese wheel to Juddy. "Fine, here."

"Thank you."

Juddy then lit the cheese on fire, stood up out of the sunroof and threw it at the car ramming them, the rapidly-melting wheel obscuring the driver's line of vision.

It skidded to a halt, accidentally collecting two more cars directly behind it.

Jeremy and Mio blinked in unison.

"I didn't think that'd work," said Mio, confused beyond all reason.

"Me neither," Jeremy added.

"There're still two on either side of us, guys!" Ritsu reminded them, eyes still on the road.

"On it," Juddy responded. "Jeremy, get up here and help me."

"Got it."

Jeremy proceeded to move the cheese to his former seat, then joined Juddy, sticking halfway out of the sunroof.

The driver of the car on their right chose that moment to look out of the left window.  
"What in the--?!"

Jeremy readied a wind spell in his throwing arm.  
_"Say cheese, jackhat!"_

And he threw the wheel through that window, knocking the driver unconscious.  
The car itself lost control and spun out, colliding with the car to their left.

Ritsu caught it through her peripheral vision. "Awesome!"

Mio, however, cringed. "I hope they're okay..."

"They're probably fine. Don't worry about it," Jeremy reassured her.

Juddy, however, was snickering at him. "Say cheese? Really?"

Jeremy rolled his eyes. "Shut up. You were thinking it too."

Juddy raised his hand to object, but couldn't. "...Yeah, you're right."

As the freeway transitioned back into the now-familiar cityscape, four more pursuers remained on the chase.

"How's our ammo?" Juddy asked.

"There weren't many of these to begin with, you know," Jeremy answered. "Two left."

Juddy grinned. "Then let's make 'em count!"

The veteran duo readied their spells and made the pitch.

Both of their throws hit home; Juddy's once again covering one car's windshield, and Jeremy's managing to pierce the hood of another, disabling its engine.

 

 _"Direct hit!"_ they yelled, sharing a high-five.

As they returned to their seats and buckled up again, Mio spoke up. "Uh, there's a problem..."

"What is it?" Juddy and Jeremy asked in unison.

"Look at this."  
Mio held up Juddy's phone, which she'd managed to procure from the empty front seat.

"There's a dead end coming. And soon."

Juddy hissed, taking back his phone. "Damn it."

Jeremy cursed under his breath. "And there are still more chasing us, too..."

"Oh, is _that_ all?"

The three turned to Ritsu.

Juddy and Mio deadpanned. "You're awfully confident."

"I'm serious. That's the _opposite_ of a problem," Ritsu stated.

Jeremy stared at Ritsu. "What are you talking abou--"

A sudden left turn tilted the car at an angle, leaving the others holding on for dear life as it coasted into an alleyway.

The cars chasing them passed right by it.

After a long silence, Jeremy was the first to speak up.   
"I'm not sure whether to be impressed, or angry."

Juddy stared blankly through the now-tilted windscreen.   
"And just like that, the laws of physics now mean nothing."

Jeremy raised an eyebrow. "Physics, Juddy? We're literally _made_ of magic."

"Yeah, but still..."

Mio could only manage a whimper.

The four-wheel-drive popped out of the alley, returning them to the streets - and returning the right side of the car to the ground.

"Tell me why you made the girl driving this vehicle right now a Radiant, Juddy," Jeremy sighed, rubbing his forehead.

"It wasn't on purpose!" Juddy retorted in defense.

"And yet, I make magic fun!" Ritsu added. "You guys should be thanking me!"

"Oh, you want fun, do you?

The entire car sat, hushed, as Juddy spoke.

He then opened the window, and yelled at the top of his lungs,   
_"You want fun?! I'll give you fun!!"_

Juddy reached out of the car and threw the strongest fire spell he cared to muster at the road below the car, sending it rocketing into the air.

Mio gripped onto Jeremy's arm tightly as he mouthed 'What in the hell was that?' to Juddy.

The world around them seemed to move in slow-motion as the four-wheel drive sailed through the air and right into the middle of a higher, busier section of the freeway.

The four drove on as Juddy exhaled, and calmly said, "And that is why seatbelts were invented."

"Uh, Mio, I can't feel my arm..." murmured Jeremy, who had lost all feeling in his left arm.

She could only manage another whimper in response.

"Okay, that is a problem," Juddy warned, glancing at the rear-view mirror. "Two chasers. And they've spotted us.

Ritsu grinned.

The three immediately tensed up.

"...What's your plan, Ritsu?" Juddy asked.

"Simple!" Ritsu replied, turning into the opposite lane.

A lane full of oncoming traffic.

"Ritsu, what are you _doing?!"_ Mio yelled, the move shocking her out of her whimpering state.

Jeremy threw up his hands. "Yup, we're boned."

Juddy, however, wasn't so level-headed. _"Are you kidding me?!"_

Ritsu paid them no mind, sticking to the emptier lane.

The two remaining pursuers followed her lead as the three passengers watched them.

Unfortunately for them, the traffic had become too dense, and they ended up crashing into some of the oncoming cars.

"I don't believe it..." Jeremy said in astonishment.

Ritsu, satisfied with herself, switched back to the correct side of the freeway, and brought them to a stop on a virtually-empty stretch of the road.

Mio burst out of the car's left passenger door, thankful to even be alive, let alone on her own two feet again.

Jeremy and Juddy followed suit, dusting themselves off and checking the vehicle. Surprisingly, there were barely any scuff marks on it.

"Wow, this thing's made of tough stuff." Jeremy was clearly impressed.

"Looks like it," Juddy agreed.

Then, they moved back to rejoin the two on the footpath.

Silence reigned supreme for a while as the four recuperated from the chase.

And then, Ritsu spoke up.

"So... did I pass?"

Mio was quick to react, smacking Ritsu on the head. "You're lucky we weren't caught, or worse!"

Juddy let out a laugh.

Jeremy strode up to Ritsu, eyes fixed to the ground. "You..."

Juddy moved back a step. "Uh-oh..."

Mio followed Juddy's lead.

Jeremy looked Ritsu in the eyes, his glare burning a hole in the back of her head.

"You thought this was a _lesson?!_ "

Ritsu shrugged, struggling to understand his meaning. "I don't know? I mean, it felt like one to me--"

"Mio..." Jeremy began, cutting Ritsu off. "...May I...?

Mio nodded in the affirmative, catching onto his intentions quickly. "Go ahead."

Jeremy then punched Ritsu on the top of her skull, sending her to the ground.

This sent Juddy into a fit of laughter.

Climbing back onto her feet, Ritsu shot Juddy an annoyed look. "It's not funny."

"Not usually, but you totally deserved that," Juddy replied, wiping away at his eyes.

Ritsu made a 'hmph' as she leaned on the side of the car.

Jeremy, meanwhile, had climbed into the driver's seat and was toying around with the radio.

The sound of flicking through stations filled the air until he settled on a certain report.  
"Hey, come listen to this. I think they're talking about this car."

"Huh?" the three others asked in unison.

_"... a two-million-dollar wig was stolen from a famous diva's home by a man driving a black four-wheel drive in..."_

"Oh, so _that's_ who the guy was..." Jeremy murmured in realization.

Juddy raised an eyebrow at that. _'You're definitely telling me that story later.'_

_"...a car chase that caused several accidents throughout the city. Miraculously, there were no casualties, and only minor injuries..."_

Mio sighed in relief.

Jeremy smiled. "See, Mio? I told you they'd be fine."

Juddy spoke up. "Now we know the reason they were at that warehouse, and why they seemed so set on stopping us."

"But that leads us to another question," said Jeremy, climbing out of the driver's seat again. "Where _is_ this really expensive wig?"

"I believe I know the answer."

Ritsu and Mio's ears perked up in recognition as the four turned to the source of the voice.

"Hello, Ricchan, Mio-chan!"

The girl they were greeted with, accompanied by two of the suited men that were chasing them earlier, wore the same uniform as Ritsu and Mio.

"Mugi!" the two girls cried, running over to her. "You're okay!"

'Mugi' smiled at the two. "I'm glad you both are fine, as well. Though..."   
Turning to Mio, she added "Mio-chan, you look like you've been through a lot."

Mio smiled back. "You don't know the half of it, Mugi."

Ritsu waved a hand. "We'll tell you the whole story later."

"I look forward to it," Mugi replied.

One of the two men spoke up. "Miss, the car...?"

Mugi perked up. "Oh! Of course!"

And so, she strode to the back of the group's vehicle and opened the doors, locating the wig almost instantly.

Then she handed it over to the two suited men. "You really should be more careful with things like this. You've caused these poor people quite a mess."

Her words were slightly harsh, but they were delivered in a pleasant manner, as if to soften the blow.  
The two suited men seemed to panic regardless.

"We're terribly sorry, miss!"  
"Please, take the car with our apologies!"

Jeremy was taken aback. "Wait, what? What happened to tampering with evidence?

Juddy shrugged. "I guess that's not a factor here. Wherever 'here' is..."

The two suited men then left in a hurry.

Mugi walked up to the veteran Radiant duo. "I'm sorry for the pain these strange circumstances have caused you."

The two waved it away. "It's fine."

"As I've said, it's not the strangest thing we've been involved with," Jeremy added. "Don't worry about it."

Mugi sighed in relief. "I'm glad."

Then, she bowed, her long, blonde hair hanging over the ground. "My name is Tsumugi Kotobuki. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Juddy and Jeremy did the same. "Nice to meet you too, Mugi."

After Juddy and Jeremy introduced themselves, Mio and Ritsu asked Mugi about the matter at hand.  
"What _was_ all that, Mugi?"  
"Yeah, what was the deal with that?"

Mugi giggled, pulling a photo out of her blazer's pocket. "It's a funny story, actually..."

The two girls called Jeremy and Juddy over to have a look.

As their eyes darted from Mugi's face to the picture, and back, the connection was drawn.

"Whoa, she looks exactly like you!" Ritsu exclaimed.

Mio pondered for a second. "I think I know what's going on now."

Juddy raised an eyebrow. "It was a case of mistaken identity?"

Mugi nodded. "Yes. Though I don't think it'll be too much longer before they figure it out."

Jeremy nodded as well. "Right. We should get out of here."

"Agreed," Ritsu replied, moving to climb into the driver's seat.

Jeremy sighed. "In the back, Ritsu."

Ritsu shot Jeremy a look. "You're no fun."

"Now," he began, "Juddy, if you would...?"

Juddy 's hands crackled with energy, and he cast a perception spell on the car.

"That should do it," he said, clapping his hands.

"What was that?" Mio asked.

"Juddy cast a perception spell on the car," Jeremy explained.  "Now they won't be able to recognize us once they figure it out."

"Then why can't I drive again?" Ritsu asked, annoyed.

"Because no amount of magic could cover up your chaotic driving," Juddy answered, matter-of-factly.

Ritsu simply rolled her eyes.

Mugi simply looked on in awe. "Amazing..."

Just then, Juddy's phone vibrated. Picking it from his pocket, he opened the maps app again.

Jeremy poked his head over Juddy's shoulder. "Did that maps app just have a notification bubble over it?"

Juddy didn't take his eyes off the map for even a second. "I'll explain later."

Two more icons had appeared, both very near each other.   
The only issue was how far they were away from their current location.

"That's quite a ways away..." Juddy murmured.

Jeremy smiled. "Looks like it's time for a good old-fashioned road trip."

"Wow...!"

Jeremy turned to Mugi. "Hm? What is it?"

"I'd like to join you!" Mugi replied, stars in her eyes.

"What?" Juddy added. "Why?"

"I've always wanted to go on a road trip!"

Mio spoke up, curious. "You've never been on a road trip before, Mugi?"

"No, but I've heard of them! It sounds like so much fun!" she answered, excited at the prospect.

Jeremy, still bewildered at this girl, made his decision. "Welcome aboard, I guess..."

Juddy nodded in confirmation. "You know what they say; the more, the merrier."

At that moment, Mugi's face lit up like a beacon. "Thank you so much!"

And then she jumped in the seat next to Ritsu, the two chatting away like they'd never been separated.

Jeremy, Juddy and Mio looked on, Juddy having put away his phone.

"Everyone ready?" Jeremy asked.

"Yes!" Ritsu replied.

"Ready!" Mugi yelled, still excited.

Mio sighed. "As I'll ever be..."

Juddy chimed in. "Awesome. Then let's get this show on the road."  
He glanced at Jeremy. "You're driving."

"As it should be," Jeremy responded, climbing into the driver's seat.

Juddy returned to the passenger's side, and Mio climbed into the back seat.

And with a turn of the ignition, the group of five set off for their next adventure.

 

 

** The Radiance Chronicles: Luminescent Harmony  
** _Escape from the City_

_\- f i n -_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to a stupid error on my part, you guys get a double-header today!
> 
> It also happened to be the end of the part. Oh well.
> 
> See you soon for Part 3: Carnival Chaos!


End file.
